Where Were You?
by THECURSOR
Summary: So where all of those other Marvel characters during the Battle of New York?
1. Chapter 1

**The Guardians of the Galaxy**

The minute he saw them, Peter Quill pulled back on the _Milano's _FTL drive and commanded his engines into a hard reverse. The ship slowed as it's exterior friction simulators and orbit manipulators kicked into overdrive and held the ship in a locked, steady orbit above the planet Xandar.

Other ships, everything from pleasure craft to huge commercial freighters, also hit their brakes and held their orbit. In a matter of moments, the skies over Xander became a huge floating traffic jam with thousands of ships hovering over the planet's thermosphere. Nothing moved as hundreds of pilots and captains simultaneously looked out at the huge battleship that was floating less than 20 Kilometers from the planet's satellite belt.

The Chitauri were marching to war.

Technically, flying an armed capital ship anywhere near an occupied planet was illegal but Quill doubted the Chitauri actually cared. They were flying through Xandarian space, no one could stop them without starting a war.

They were probably doing it on purpose, Quill thought, Thanos wants to remind everyone he still has the best space navy in the Galaxy.

Through the main canopy of his ship, Quill could see other ships start to deactivate their engines entirely, turning off their main power systems and float dead in space. Playing dead was an understandable reaction but Peter knew it was also a really suicidal strategy. By turning off their engines they would be invisible to a sensor sweep but they'd also be sitting ducks. It wasn't like the Chitauri didn't know they were there, they could just look out their port window and see a bunch of ships floating over Xandar. If an attack came, the Chitauri fighters could pick apart anything in their eye-line.

Quill kept his engine running...but he did turn off his exterior lights. Just in case.

* * *

><p>From his cell in the Kyln, Drax watched the holo feeds as news of the Chitauri's battle group spread through the sector. He knew of the Chitauri, fierce warriors loyal only to Thanos the Mad Titan.<p>

Thanos. The name dripped across his brain like a poison, touching every nerve with rage. He scowled as he remembered that Thanos was the man who had ordered Ronan to attack his home planet. He remembered that the coalition of Chitauri and Sakaarans who raped and pillaged his world and the fires they set in the capital city before killing nearly a million people.

Drax watched the holo feed and started sharpening a new shiv he had made from piece of deck plating. He imagined using it to decapitate his enemies. First Ronan, then Gamora, then Nebula, then, one day, Thanos…

* * *

><p>On Krylor, Groot watched the holofeed and felt a terrible sense of foreboding deep in his branches. Rocket was still passed out on the floor of the bar and most of the other patrons were ignoring the terrible news flashing across the screen from Xandar. Why should they care? Xandar was on the other side of the quadrant from Krylor and most of the thugs and goons gathered in this seedy establishment weren't interested in galactic politics even when they weren't drunk. But Groot noticed...and he was worried. What was it his seed mother had said to him? "Beware the dark wind, for it blows before the storm."<p>

It was a wise saying, he often tried to use in conversations with other non-Groots but sadly it always came out as "I Am Groot" which robbed the line of some of it's poetry.

* * *

><p>Gamora watched the Chitauri battleships as they crawled across the throne room's view screen. She imagined the hundreds of blood thirsty cyborgs inside the ship sharpening their weapons as they prepared to ransack another world...another world just like hers.<p>

She looked over at Nebula and for a brief moment saw look of pain pass across her sister's face, a look similar to her own. It seems her foster sister had a heart after all.

Thanos, however, only smiled with glee. "Come, here my daughters, sit on papa's lap." Thanos shouted and Gamora felt bile in her throat, "Let us listen to this Earth place scream."

* * *

><p><strong>Nova<strong>

Nova Prime watched the telemetry on the screen as various aides and technicians brought her minute to minute updates on the invasion of Earth.

The Chitauri fleet had opened their wormhole barely a parsec from Xandar's sovereign space and it was easy to observe their attack patterns through the long range satellites as they lined up at the wormhole's entrance and started flying down into Earth's atmosphere.

And there was nothing they could do. The Chitauri were deliberately sitting just inside of Neutral Space and they were well aware that the entire galaxy was watching this invasion on the Holo-feeds. They deliberately wanted everyone to see what they were doing on Thanos' behalf.

The Chitauri fleet wasn't even that big of a threat, just one mother ship and a few support vessels. If Nova Prime gave the order, four fleets of Nova ships could swoop in and easily blast them out of existence. But that was exactly what Thanos wanted, for the Xandarians to let their emotions get the best of them and start a war. He would giggle with that sick smile on his face as he shredded every peace treaty the central empires had made him sign and then start murdering everyone in existence.

Deep in her guts, Nova Prime knew that this was only the beginning, Thanos was going to start killing off any planet that wasn't aligned to a central empire and the races that could possibly stop him, elder races like the Asgardians, the Olympians, and the Eternals, were either too apathetic or currently busy fighting their own battles. She was powerless.

Still, she wondered, if these unaligned planets had their own Nova Corps member assigned to them, they could actually create a kind of...diversion. A small resistance that might slow down Thanos' master plans.

Nova Prime tapped a button on her console to contact the Centurion in Charge of Recruitment…

* * *

><p><strong>Spider-Man<strong>

A small group of Chitauri raiders flew over the river and into Brooklyn, breaking away from the main group with orders to kill at least two thousand humans. It would be an easy task since the human armies had lost their air superiority the minute the Chitauri air skiffs hit their upper atmosphere. So Chitauri Battle Leader 44321 was confident that his group could achieve this task.

Flying in formation, 44321 directed his soldiers to open fire upon the various stone structures used by the humans as housing. This was not to destroy the structures, but to cause as much debris to fall upon the humans running to safety in the streets below. It was a common Chitauri tactic known among their people as the "rain of stones", it was usually very effective in causing horrific casualties.

But for some reason, today it wasn't working. Today, every time a large brick or piece of steel fell towards the ground...some unseen force used a net or a wire to keep the debris from hitting the ground. It was extremely frustrating.

44321 flew closer to the ground to find the source of this resistance. He dived near one of the rooftops and peered down at the streets below.

Only to receive a hard kick in the face from a flying blue and red clad being. "Heads up spaceman!" The being shouted.

* * *

><p><strong>The Punisher<strong>

Chitauri Drone 48109 marched calmly down Yancy Street and randomly opened fire on any living creature that entered his field of vision. This was a common Chitauri ground tactic known as the "slaughter of the animals", Chitauri shock troopers would walk through residential areas and kill and then execute as many people as possible. 48109 followed this tactic to the letter but he also prioritized targets who appeared to be either female or in their immature larval stage.

Humans were known to be horrified by the deaths of females and immature youths.

The Drone had just vaporized an elderly female when it felt a small tap on it's shoulder, it turned to see a large human male wearing some kind of black skull uniform. The human smiled. "Nice gun." He said.

The final thirty seconds of Drone 48109's life were very, very painful.

* * *

><p><strong>Daredevil<strong>

It was very dark in the subterranean structures under New York and the small attack group of ground Drones were having trouble navigating in the darkness. Their cybernetic skulls had not been fitted for low light engagement and they were forced to use their enhanced hearing instead of their visual structures. At the end of the tunnel they could just barely see a human rail vehicle which had been evacuated after the attack began.

Just as they prepared to entered the vehicle, Drone 39126 felt a strong pair of hands grab him by the shoulder and flip his body into the air. He landed on the electrified third rail and died a horrific, fiery death.

Suddenly from the shadows, the surviving drones heard a mocking voice call out to them. "Please take it easy on me fellas," It whispered, "Because I'm handicapped."

* * *

><p><strong>Dr. Strange <strong>

In the realm between worlds, where the Vishanti dwell, a sudden disturbance awakened Doctor Stephen Strange from his meditation. His eyes snapped open and he uttered two words. "Infinity Gauntlet." He gasped.

* * *

><p><strong>Black Panther <strong>

Chitauri Drones entered the United Nations Lobby with minimal resistance, since the building's security forces were more focused on evacuation than on battling alien invaders. Most of the building's occupants had either taken shelter in the building's basement or run out through the rear exits but one very special VIP guest had slipped away from his handlers and was now preparing to do battle in the traditional manner of his mighty people. In the darkness, he slipped on the black hood that had been worn by his father and grandfather before him.

As the Chitauri entered the darkened offices of the Wakanda Delegation, they fanned out in search of someone to execute but all they found was the sound of Vibranium claws unsheathing in the darkness…

* * *

><p><strong>Captain Marvel and The X-Men <strong>

Major Carol Danvers pulled her F-35 into a tight spiral over the city of New York as she tried desperately to avoid the plasma bursts of the attacking Chitauri hot on her tail. She was the last member of her Squadron still in the air and she knew that if she didn't get the hell out of Manhattan's air space she was as good as dead.

She tried desperately to shake the attacking Chitauri air skiff behind her but it remained glued to her exhaust trail no matter what maneuver she pulled. Carol let one of her hands grip the ejection system and prepared to ditch at the last minute.

But there was no need, another large black aircraft flew across her position and strafed the attacking Chitauri with a loud burst of angry machine gun fire. Carol looked over her shoulder at the friendly pilot, who gave her a quick salute….with a furry blue hand and a fanged smile.

* * *

><p><strong>Hercules<strong>

Zeus slammed his fist in rage against the arm of his throne. "The blaggard!" He shouted, "The slimy blaggard!" So fierce was the Sky King's rage that force of his voice was enough knock over a nearby bowl of fruit, sending the produce crashing to the floor. Zeus' loyal servants, Hebe and Ganymede, rushed to clean up the mess before his fury turned upon them.

Athena was unfazed by her father's rage and merely raised an eyebrow at his furious reaction to the news of Earth's invasion, "You expected Thanos to honor his word?"

"I expected that the combined might of Asgard and Olympus would be enough to dissuade him from taking such rash action. Obviously I was mistaken." The Lord of the Olympians took a deep breath and lowered his voice to a more manageable level, "Send an envoy to Thanos and inform him that if I see one more Necrocraft in Earth's atmosphere, they can expect my battle ships to follow. Then summon Hercules, tell him to prepare for war."

To Be Continued...


	2. Chapter 2

**The Forgotten One **

The Solid Space Bar was one of Knowhere's more famous haunts. Pirates, bastards and liars of all shapes and sizes were known to frequent the bar at all hours. Men and women who spent their lives stealing and murdering would exchange their carefully stolen precious metals and currency for a a few hours of drunken debauchery in darkly lit rooms. This type of establishment did not attract the most civic minded members of the galactic community. So no one was really watching the holonews about the Chitauri invasion of Earth, they were too busy getting sloshed on watered down liquor.

Except one man.

He was an Eternal, an ancient race that was so old they were practically mythical, centuries ago he had been stranded on Earth and had lived among it's people. His feats of heroism among those wonderful, resilient people had earned him many legendary names: Cadmus, Jack the Giant Killer, Ilya Moromet, Gilgamesh, and many others. So prolific were the tales of his travels that among his people, he had been given an ironic nickname by the other Eternals "One Who Is Easily Forgotten"

The knowledge that his former home was now at the mercy of an army of killers was...infuriating.

When he saw a large leviathan descend into the wormhole over Earth, his mighty hand crushed his steel cup into powder. Thanos would pay for this.

**Namor **

Atlantis was a hidden city, unknown to the world of men, it's occupants cared little for the goings on in the world above.

The "invasion" in the skies was only interesting to the king of Atlantis because it was going to delay his own planned invasion. He watched the events through the viewing screen with a sense of detached amusement.

**Ghost Rider **

Chitauri did not feel guilt, they were an offshoot race of the Skrull that had been altered through genetic engineering and cybernetic enhancement by the Mad Titan and one of the first things to go was emotion. Thanos had removed "guilt" from them centuries ago. Most had never had a real emotion in their lives and thought nothing of killing or dying for their master.

But when Drone 2242 looked into the eyes of the strange, flame headed man who drove a two wheeled motor vehicle, he was suddenly filled with such...strange emotions. Painful ones.

As the laughing monster drove away, 2242 decided he could not live with this pressing guilt. He removed his side arm and shot himself in the head.

**She Hulk **

From her hospital bed, Jennifer Walters could just barely make out the newscast about the terrible events going on in New York. The chemo made it hard to raise her head but she could just barely see a large green beast that had a semi familiar face. The drugs must've been playing tricks on her, it almost looked like..."Cousin Bruce?"

**Spider Woman **

Deep within Mount Wundagore, the Eternal Being known as The High Evolutionary watched Spider Man destroy two attack drones and then effortlessly swing away.

The Evolutionary marveled and clapped at the display. Perhaps he could replicate this effect in one of his test subjects.

Perhaps that woman, the Hydra girl he had stashed in stasis...she might be a good test subject.

**The Fantastic Four **

In his lab at NASA test facility in Florida, Reed Richards saw the invasion on tv and felt powerless to do anything. All of this intelligence and he was useless. Disheartened, he slammed a fist on the table...only to notice that one of his experiments with cosmic energy had delivered a strange result on his computer screen...

**Mockingbird **

Hawkeye limped out of the front entrance of the office building he had landed in and looked around. He was a full two blocks from Stark Tower and he needed to get there fast. He was about to start running when he heard the sound of a familiar Mustang engine pull up behind him.

"Hey Clint," said Bobbi Morse, "Need a ride?"

**Wolverine **

Drone 14660 entered the small bar and opened fire at the patrons inside. Everyone in the bar had the good sense to hit the floor.

Everyone except one man.

For some reason this man continued to calmly drink his beer. 14660 decided to punish this disrespect by firing a plasma beam into the man's back. The human cried out in pain and then dropped to the floor with a hole in his back. 14660 squealed with satisfaction and then turned back to his hostages, screeching at them in several different galactic languages.

Then 14660 heard a strange sound, a "Snikt", and turned back to see the man was alive and well and standing on his feet.

"You made me spill my beer, bub."

**Wonder Man **

The entire film crew had stopped what they were doing and we're watching the news on the director's cell phone. This was horrible, people were dying.

One man, an actor named Simon Williams, watched a little more closely than everyone else.

**Moon Knight**

In his apartment in Cairo, Marc Spector heard the soft voice of his divine benefactor whisper in his ear. "It is time my servant, bring them justice."

Hearing the call, Marc Spector knelt before the statue of Khonsu, the ancient egyptian deity who had saved his life, and he answered his master. "As you wish, my lord."

**Inhumans **

Attilan, home of the Inhuman off shoots of the Kree race, shook.

It's entire foundations shifted as one man sitting on a throne whispered: "Soon."

**Vision **

Technically, the JARVIS program was not yet alive when Tony flew the Iron Man suit into the wormhole so it did not yet truly "worry" about it's master's safety. It's primary function was to preserve Tony's life and safety so it was possible that it felt fear or at least something similar to apprehension, apprehension towards failure of it's "life" goal.

Still, the program did also feel something close to what might be called pride when it confirmed that the Chitauri mothership had been destroyed. Then Tony started to fall and as the suit's systems shut down it felt...was that concern? Maybe...love for the man it was protecting?

**Starfox **

Bereet giggled. This man she had taken to her bed was a masterful lover, best ever actually, and there was just something about him that made him oh so...wonderful. Something old and ancient and beautiful.

So when he stopped in the middle of their lovemaking so he could watch the Holofeed, Bereet was instantly annoyed. She wanted to bark out orders to her lover and demand he get back to work but she stopped when she saw there were tears in his eyes. "What is wrong, beloved?"

"It's my brother," Eros whispered as he saw Chitauri bearing Thanos' symbol marching across Earth, "I think he might be very sick."


End file.
